Antony Blinken hails candid talks on high stakes China trip

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held “candid” and “constructive” talks with China’s foreign minister in Beijing at the start of two days of meetings with Chinese officials, the US State Department has said.

Mr Blinken emphasised the need for diplomacy and keeping “open channels of communication” US officials added.

The trip, the first by a US diplomat to China in almost five years, comes months after an earlier Blinken visit was postponed when a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew in US airspace.

US officials say the main goal of the talks is to stabilise a relationship that has become extremely tense.

China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang told Mr Blinken that Beijing was committed to building a stable, predictable and constructive relationship with the US, state media said. US officials said he had agreed to a visit to Washington at the talks.

Mr Qin said Taiwan was the “most prominent risk” for ChinaUS relations and described the Taiwan issue as one of “China’s core interests”, state media said.

China sees self-ruled Taiwan as a breakaway province that will eventually be under Beijing’s control, but Taiwan sees itself as distinct from the Chinese mainland with its own constitution and leaders. US President Joe Biden said last year that the US would defend Taiwan in the event of an attack from China, a move condemned by Beijing.

Mr Qin greeted Mr Blinken on Sunday morning at the Diaoyutai State Guest House, a lavish estate that typically hosts visiting dignitaries.

The two shook hands as they stood before their respective flags, then sat down with their delegations at long tables to begin their meetings.

The greeting was business-like, underscoring the chilly relations that have developed between the two superpowers in recent years.

The US had been lowering expectations for the trip and both sides have made clear they do not expect any major breakthrough.

The war in Ukraine, trade disputes over advanced computer technologies, the fentanyl drug epidemic in the US and Chinese human rights conduct are all topics the Americans were expecting to be discussed.

Chinese officials have reacted coolly to Mr Blinken’s visit, questioning whether the US is sincere in its efforts to mend relations.

It is not clear whether he will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Mr Blinken is the highestranking US government official to visit China since President Joe Biden took office in January 2021.

“If we want to make sure, as we

Greece boat disaster: Ship tracking casts doubt

The BBC has obtained evidence casting doubt on the Greek coastguard’s account of the migrant shipwreck in which hundreds are feared to have died.

Analysis of the movement of other ships in the area suggests the overcrowded fishing vessel was not moving for at least seven hours before it capsized.

The coastguard still claims that during these hours the boat was on a course to Italy and not in need of rescue.

Greek authorities have not yet responded to the BBC’s findings.

But the UN has called for an investigation into Greece’s handling of the disaster, amid claims more action should have been taken earlier to initiate a full-scale rescue attempt.

Greek officials maintain those on board said they did not want help and were not in danger until just before their boat sank.

The BBC has obtained a computer animation of tracking data provided by MarineTraffic, a maritime analytics platform.

Their data shows hours of activity focused on a small, specific area where the migrant boat later sank, casting doubt on the official claim it had no problems with its navigation.

The fishing boat had no tracker so is not shown on the map. Neither are coastguard and military vessels which do not have to share their location.

Timeline of official coastguard account challenged

Frontex, the EU’s border force, says it first spotted the migrant boat at around 08:00 GMT on Tuesday and informed the Greek authorities.

Alarm Phone, an emergency hotline for migrants in trouble at sea, say they received a call at 12:17 GMT saying the boat was in distress.

We have used video and photographs authenticated by BBC Verify, as well as court records and shipping logs, to analyse the movement of vessels in the area in the following hours.

The Marine Traffic animation shows a ship called the Lucky Sailor abruptly turning north at 15:00 GMT.

The owner of the Lucky Sailor gave us its log book and confirmed it had been asked by the Coastguard to approach the migrant boat and give food and water.

About half-an-hour later at 15:35 GMT, the coastguard helicopter found the migrant boat. Authorities have continued to claim it was on a steady course at the time.

But two-and-a-half hours later at around 18:00 GMT, another vessel, the Faithful Warrior, travelled to the same area and also gave supplies to the boat.

The owners of Faithful Warrior referred us to the investigating authorities.

Video has emerged - reportedly shot from the Faithful Warrior - claiming to show supplies being delivered to the migrant ship via a rope in the water. No other ships can be seen.

BBC Verify checked it and found the vessel - which is not moving in the footage - matched the shape of migrant ship seen in photos and the weather conditions were a match for those reported at the time. It’s not know exactly when this video was filmed.

Between 19:40 until 22.40, Greek officials originally claimed the boat was keeping a “steady course and speed”.

Their initial statement claimed they observed from a discreet distance, but a closeup image they later themselves publishedfrom this time-period - suggests the migrant boat is not going anywhere.

This picture of the fishing boat in the hours before it sank was released by the do, that the competition that we have with China doesn’t veer into conflict, the place you start is with communicating,” Mr Blinken told reporters on Friday.

Later he said he hoped to meet President Xi in the next few months.